OSHIMA TSUMUGI
Oshima Tsumugi shares with Goblin Tapestries and Persian Carpets the distinction of being one of the finest woven fabrics in the world.
Oshima Tsumugi embodies the most elaborate precision of all Kasuri (IKAT: resist dyed threads) in the world.
It has been produced on Amami, Oshima-gun, Kagoshima prefecture for the past 13000 years.
It is a plain-weave silk fabric with pre-dyed and dyed with plant dyes such as Techiki (Raphilolepis umbellate) and Indigo (AI: Persicaria Tinctoria) using a technique, distinctive to Oshima Tsumugi, called Ori-Jime. For variety, the dyed threads might then be dipped in muddy water in a method known as Doro-Zome (mud-dyeing). Tsumugi was woven with hands-span threads.
Oshima Tsumugi, like most of Japan’s Fine Hand-Crafted Industries, has suffered greatly in the high-tech world, making examples of this fabric rare and highly collectable.
There are several kinds of “Oshima Tsumugi”
Doro Oshima Tsumugi
Ai Oshima Tsumugi
Doro Ai Oshima Tsumugi
Iro (color) Oshima Tsumugi